Intentions
by atinaej
Summary: Sequel to Changes. Bella and Carlisle are getting married, but Edward is waiting in the shadows and Laurent's threat is still in the back of their minds.
1. Preface

We had known that something or someone would come after us. We had just not been able to do anything about it. This fight could mean losing loved ones, dying, for good, or the destruction of our entire family.

I looked at my beautiful Bella. The only one I could not survive losing.

She looked back up at me, smiling softly and reaching up to touch my face. I took her hand in mine and pressed it to my cheek. I was not ready to be separated from her, but I knew she wouldn't let me go alone.

"Are you ready?" I asked her.

She nodded.

I sighed and hugged her close. This was it. The point of no return.

* * *

**I know this has been long. But so much has happened in my life since November. And I won't get in detail, but much of it has been pretty messed up. But this is my vow that I have begun, and Paola-Bearrr will make sure that I stick by it. That is all. I hope you like the preface, and I will get back to writing.**

**A special thanks to the ones who have been asking when I will post, and who has supported me even though I haven't updated in so long. *bows* I am grateful for it.**

**And I hope you still want me to write, and that I'm welcomed back into the fandom. **

**Jeanita.**


	2. Home

**Carlisle POV**

The arrival hall in the Port Angeles airport was filled with people, people who hadn't seen each other in a long time, people who just arrived together. The air was filled with "I love you"s, and people telling each other how much they had missed the other.

With one arm around Bella, and the other holding her carry-on bag, I stood there and waited for the baggage. The band had just started to roll, and the first bags were making their way around to their owners.

I felt Bella's head resting on my chest, and I pulled her closer and kissed the top of her head. She smelled like sunshine and strawberries in addition to her normal scent of freesias, and I inhaled deeply of the wonderful mix.

She looked up at me, her brown eyes smiling. She had changed a lot the past couple of weeks. In addition to have gotten a new glow from the sun, and gotten more red-brown highlights in her hair because of the sun, she also seemed to shine with a new light. Like she had become surer of herself.

Our vacation had not turned out like planned. Sure, the island was pretty, and there had been much to do, Bella had enjoyed the sun, and we had both loved each other's company. But Bella had changed her mind about things. Not that I minded.

Though, I would have to take some of the credit for that. Or blame. Whichever was the correct way of putting it.

I hadn't wanted to change Bella before her wedding. I had told her that, and she had agreed as well. That it would be better to officially do that after we were married. She could understand that, she said. But then I had had this other idea as well. An idea she hadn't liked as well as the other one.

I had suggested that we also waited with having sex till after the wedding. She had laughed to begin with, but then she had realized that I was serious. Then she had started talking about how good this chance was, how we were alone. It had taken some time, but eventually she had cooled down and seen my point of the view. We had forever, so there was so reason for rushing things.

"I love you." I said before I kissed the top of her head again.

The scent of the freesias got stronger, and I could feel her cheek getting warmer. I smiled, she was still easily embarrassed, she was still Bella.

"I love you too." she murmured into my shirt.

I had to smile as my heart grew to double size by the words. I knew they were true, I could hear the meaning behind them.

I could see the suitcases, and I stretched out an arm and yanked them off the band.

"Ready to go home?" I asked Bella.

She shook her head.

"Not at all."

I had to laugh.

For the past two weeks, Alice had been good. She had not contacted Bella about the wedding, and she had not even contacted me. She had let us have our time, but both I and Bella knew that that would end the moment we walked through the doors to the house. I didn't mind. I looked forward to the wedding, and I looked forward to be able to call Bella mine in every sense of the word.

I had asked Bella many times if she was sure that she wanted this wedding, and every time she had given me this look that left no doubt. She wanted to marry me, but she was also terrified of it. I couldn't blame her. She had grown up with divorced parents, parents that had married when they were too young, and too naive to understand the consequences of it. But Bella understood, I was sure about that.

We headed for the doors that would lead out to the parking lot where my car would be standing. Bella walked silently by my side, only sighing now and then.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

She hesitated, and bit her lip.

"Do you think we should tell Charlie?" she asked.

It didn't sound like she was finished, so I let her continue.

"I mean, I am his only daughter, and this would be the only chance he could have had to walk me down the aisle."

She looked worried and thoughtful.

"Do you think Charlie would understand you marrying someone like me?"

I doubted that myself. The Chief of police would not like the idea of his daughter marrying someone this much older than herself, doctor or not.

Bella shrugged.

"I guess he wouldn't. He wouldn't understand that I'm marrying an almost 34 year old, newly divorced doctor."

I nodded. I knew this, and still I felt my heart sink a little. It would have been better if Charlie was there for Bella. Like some sort of link to the human world, as she was about to leave it behind for good.

We walked the rest of the distance to the car in silence, but I felt that there was something else she wanted to say. I pushed the button for the automatic lock-system and the lights flashed. Bella took a deep breath and spoke so fast that the word came out pushing each other.

"What if he knew I was marrying a 23 year old vampire?" Bella asked suddenly.

I stopped for a moment, placed the suitcases in the trunk of the car, and turned to look at Bella.

"You know we can't tell him." I said quietly. "We would have to give him the same choice as Angela had, and frankly, I'm not sure he could handle it."

She nodded, but kept speaking.

"But what if we didn't tell him about the vampire part?" she said more urgently.

I motioned her to get into the car, and I opened the door to the driver's seat myself. I didn't see where she wanted to go with this. I turned the key, and the engine roared to life.

"What do you mean, Bella?"

She looked down at her hands, twining and untwining her fingers.

"What if he only knew there was something different about you? What if we never had to tell him about vampires?"

I backed out of the parking space and headed for the main road.

"Bella.." I begun, unsure how to continue. "How do you suggest we go along with that plan? Just say; "Carlisle is 23, he'll never age, but I can't tell you why."? Even if he believed the first part, he would never just let you leave it at that."

Bella nodded again, and her face fell a little. I reached out and placed my hand right over her knee.

"Bella, I thought you had understood that Charlie wouldn't be able to be a part of your life like before?"

She nodded again.

"It's just." She took a pause, and kept twining her fingers. "I am his only child, and I know that he will miss me. But I can't stay with him forever, I have to grow up and move out. Or in this case, never grow up and move in with you."

She sighed.

"I just.. I just wish he could walk me down the aisle. Just that one last thing."

We drove in silence for a while. Bella hadn't had any requests when it came to the wedding, and I knew that she should get this one thing, but I had no idea how she could have that. We could go with the official story, that I was almost 34, but I had a feeling that Charlie wouldn't exactly be thrilled by the idea anyway.

I looked over at Bella. She would never turn 19, she would be 18 forever. She would never have children, and therefore Charlie would never get grandchildren. He would forever hope that his daughter would come home to visit him, but he would be disappointed every time.

And he would miss her as much as she would miss him.

"I'm sorry, love."

Bella looked up at me, her eyes were sad, but she kept it in again. Like she always did.

"No. I'm fine. I knew that it had to be like this, I just wish he could be there."

I knew that she was lying, and I lifted my hand from her leg to her hand and squeezed it lightly.

"You don't have to pretend to be strong, Bella. Not around me."

She looked at me with disbelief.

"I have to be twice as strong around you." She smiled briefly before continuing. "I don't want you to think that I am having second thoughts about becoming a vampire."

I pulled over to the side of the road and stopped the car, and then I turned in my seat and placed my hands on her cheeks. Her eyes were watery, and I could see that she wanted to cry.

"My beloved Bella." I shook my head. "Don't think you have to be strong because I will think you've changed your mind. I won't. I trust you, and I trust you to be honest if you ever should change your mind."

The first tear escaped the corner of her eye and I wiped it away with my thumb.

"I know that there are other people you care about as well, and I don't want you to have to distance yourself from your father."

I gave her a reassuring smile.

"I would love to have Charlie walking you down the aisle. I would love it if he gave you away, and he can if you want to. But he has to think that he is giving you away to an almost 34 year old man, and I don't know if you want that."

Her hand flew up to her face.

"I'm sorry."

She laughed and cried at the same time.

"I know I am supposed to be happy, I just got home from a vacation with my boyfriend, but.." she wiped more tears from her cheeks. "I don't know. It seems so much more real now."

I smiled at her.

"Of course it does."

I kissed her forehead, and let my lips linger a little longer than necessary.

"Don't worry about it, Bella. I know you love me."

She opened her mouth as if to speak again, but I cut her off.

"You have been awake for a long time, you've crossed a lot of time-zones, you're exhausted, and nervous, and you realize that time is going by faster than you had time to catch up with it."

She nodded.

"I will always love you, don't forget that. No matter how stupid you think your reaction to different things are. No matter how much you will miss parts of your human life."

I tucked some of her thick, mahogany hair behind her ear and kissed her cheek. Her eyes held the experience of someone who had been on the earth for a much longer time than she had, and she had a soul that was wiser and kinder than most people and vampires I had ever met.

"I think we should get back home now. You're tired, and you could use a night in your own bed."

Her heart skipped at the sound of that, and she smiled.

"My own bed.."

The scent of freesias filled the car, and the beautiful blush was back on her cheeks.

I let go of her and started the car again. I knew I drove faster than I should, but I had a feeling that there wouldn't be any traffic controls. And even if there were, I was sure I could bribe the cops to let it pass.

We sat there in silence, and I noticed how Bella's head soon rested on the back of her seat, and how her eyes were closed and her breathing even. She had been tired. But I knew that there was also truth to her words. She wanted Charlie to be there for her wedding, and she would really miss him.

I wondered if there was a way he would accept his 18 year old daughter marrying me, but I just couldn't see that happen. He was the typical, over-protective father, who just wanted the best for his daughter, and the best would clearly not be me. He would want her to find someone her own age, someone who hadn't been married before.

The drizzling rain outside made the day seem even darker than it would have been, and I caught myself looking out into the forest on each side to see if there were anyone looking back at me.

I was looking for Edward.

Jasper had said he hadn't gone far from Forks ever since we left, so his promise to wait in the shadows was clearly not an empty one. I hadn't expected differently from him either. He still thought he had some claim on Bella, but what he couldn't see was that she had already outgrown him.

I wondered if he would start a scene when he found out about the wedding. I had asked Alice about this, but she said that as long as Edward stayed this far away from the family, he wouldn't know until it was too late. I hoped she was right.

I turned up the familiar drive towards the house, and the sleeping girl made a sleepy noise as the road became bumpy and uneven, but she never woke up. The lights were on when we reached the house, and I could see Alice in the window, waving and smiling.

She was by the car the moment I stopped it.

"Bella is sleeping." I said in a low voice that Bella's ears wouldn't detect. "And I think she needs it."

Alice nodded in understanding and went to the back of the car to get the bags.

"And she'll be sleeping till the morning. And then we can go over everything, and try on her beautiful wedding dress, and she'll have to call Angela.."

Alice kept ranting on about what had to be done, and what had happened while we were gone, but I didn't really care. I walked over to the passenger seat, opened the door, and carefully lifted Bella out of the car.

I could hear Alice sighing behind us.

"No worries, you really don't have to pay attention to what I am saying."

I could hear the playful tone in her voice, and I had to smile. She ran past me into the house.

Everyone was quiet when I entered, it almost seemed deserted. The furniture was rearranged, something that had often happened when Esme lived here. There was also a beautiful painting, in which I thought to be Rosalie's style.

"Uh-huh." Emmett whispered. "You're not staying here."

His voice startled me and I turned around to look at him, his eyes shone with excitement.

"We gave Esme back her bedroom, so there's no way you guys are staying here."

I raised my eyebrows in questioning, but he just led the way out of the house. He stopped every now and then, and was careful to move branches and trees away so that there wouldn't be anything to wake Bella up.

"It's not all done yet." He said. "I mean, we are going to make a better path from the main house, and there are a few minor details that Esme and Alice are set on changing. Rosalie thought that Bella should have a saying in it as well."

It suddenly dawned on me where we were going.

As we stepped into the clearing I could see the old cabin that had been standing there for as long as we had been living in Forks. It was restored, and it was now even more beautiful than I had expected it to be.

"It's a wedding present." Alice's voice said from behind us. "But since we figured you guys would want some privacy, we decided you should have it early."

As Esme walked out of the cabin followed by Rosalie, I turned towards Alice.

"This is what you've been up to for the past couple of weeks." It wasn't really a question.

She giggled quietly.

"Yes." Then she placed her small hands on my shoulders and turned me around again. "Go on."

As I walked passed Esme, she gave me a warm and sincere smile. I opened the door to the cabin, and walked inside. Another new beginning, but this time I was surrounded by the ones I loved.

**Yeah. It took longer than I thought it would, but it also got longer than I thought it would, and it also got a bit different than I thought it would. Remember that it is just a first chapter, and that the action hasn't started yet. It will, soon, and it will be a bit darker than Changes. I won't give away too much, but there are parts I don't look forward to writing.**

**Next chapter will be so much easier to write, and I look forward to really start this story. **

**And thank you so much for welcoming me back. You guys are truly the best. **

**Jeanita**


	3. Normality

_**It's been a long time, but I finally found the inspiration and the strength to go back to this story. I am glad I took the break though, because this has given me the chance to reconsider some parts of it, and make sure that the plot will be interesting enough.**_

_**But I am back. Hopefully for real this time!**_

_**J.**_

_**

* * *

**_

_**Carlisle's POV**_

The girl on the bed stretched and moaned as the first rays of the morning sun hit her face.

"Carlisle?"

She sat up and turned around to look at the room.

"Where are we?"

I laughed and walked over to sit on her bed. I handed her a cup of coffee as I kissed her forehead, not that I would understand why humans actually liked it, but I thought she would need it with the long day ahead of her.

"Do you like it?" I asked.

She took a sip of the coffee, looked around and nodded.

"Sure. It's beautiful, but where are we?"

I grinned; I couldn't hold the emotions back any longer. This was our place. This was the first sign that we got to start a life of our own, a life that we were the ones to decide the direction of.

"This is your new home, Bella."

Her eyes widened, and she carefully got out of the bed and walked over to the window. I know that the little stream by the garden was the first thing her eyes would set on, and I also knew that the sparkles of the morning sun reflecting off the millions of drops of dew on the blue and white flowers would take her breath away. I knew her well enough to know just how much she appreciated these little miracles.

"Where are we?" she asked again, her voice a little weaker than the last time.

I laughed.

"It's just a couple of minutes away from the main house. If you walk." She turned towards me with a surprised look on her face. "Well… you'll probably not be walking the first times, since Emmett hasn't finished graveling the path."

She seemed to be at loss of words, so I just continued.

"And the house isn't completely done either, but Rosalie told Esme and Alice to let you have a say in the last details."

She looked around at the carefully selected pieces of furniture. Everything was old-fashioned, and none of the pieces really fitted into a set, but everything was perfect together. It created a cozy and unique atmosphere and looked just right in the small cottage.

Bella walked into the other room, looking around with wide eyes and silently gasping when she saw how much work had been put into the details.

"Carlisle! It's perfect!"

I laughed.

"Hardly. It's cozy and private, but with a sad lack of running water. But I guess that won't be a problem for more than a couple of weeks. After that the need of running water won't be as strong as now. Till then I'll run you back and forth to the house."

She blushed at the hint towards her human needs, but didn't comment it any further. It was strange how natural being with her had become over the last few weeks. As she stood there, the sunlight playing with her messy hair, the oversized t-shirt only reaching her mid-thigh, slowly sipping her coffee, I realized how normal this seemed. And how much she had changed in that short time.

She turned and gave me a wondering look when she noticed my eyes on her, and I walked over to her and put my arms around her waist.

"It won't be long now." She murmured, the cup of warm coffee to her bottom lip.

I rested my chin on her head and breathed in the fresh scent of her strawberry shampoo and the naturally sweet smell of freesias her blood gave her.

"No," I hugged her a bit closer. "it's not long at all."

Once again I felt her heart racing, her temperature faintly increasing by the blood being rushed through her veins.

She turned in my arms, so that she was facing me. Her impossibly brown eyes met mine, and they sparkled with excitement and joy. She was looking forward to this new life as much as I was.

I leaned down and placed a careful kiss on her lips. The bitter taste of the coffee mixed with the normally sweet, almost vanilla, taste her lips had. The cup with the warm drink was pressed to my chest between us, warming the spot right above my still heart. Hers was beating so hard that I could feel the vibrations in the air around her, feel it echoing in the liquid in her cup.

I pulled away from the kiss, knowing that there would be people here soon if we didn't go over to the house. Besides, it had been hours since Bella had eaten, and she would surely need to tend to other human needs as well.

"Alice will probably not let me live to see the wedding day if I keep you here for the entire morning. She wants to go over some wedding details with you."

I felt the sigh in Bella's body as well as the breath of air that caressed my skin. It morphed into a groan, and I laughed at the expression on her face.

"But if you hand me over to Alice, _I_ might not make it to the wedding."

The playful sparkle in her eyes gave her away though; she didn't hate the idea enough to refuse.

I laughed and kissed the tip of her nose.

"You should get some clothes before we head over to the house. Not that I don't like what you're wearing right now.."

She was the one to laugh now, slapping my hands as she wriggled out of my grip. She put the cup down and walked back into the bedroom.

"Where are my clothes?"

I suddenly felt a pang of worry. This part she really wouldn't like.

"Well. I thought the ones you had yesterday would need to be washed, and Alice said that there were more than enough clothes in the closet."

She stood in the doorway, looking back into the room, looking for a closet.

"The clothes I had at the house?" she asked with a worried voice.

I didn't answer, simply because I didn't know the answer. I had no idea if Alice had thought of moving Bella's clothes out here, since there was a pretty good possibility that she had become so infatuated with the shopping that she had forgotten there already were clothes there.

I knew Bella had found the closet by the gasp that broke the silence, and silently prayed that Alice hadn't gone too far with her early wedding present.

"This can hardly be called a closet!"

Her voice was coming from further away now, she must have stepped into the next room.

"Hasn't she bought a single pair of normal jeans?"

I walked over to the closet door in time to see her yank on a pair of jeans while silently muttering things about 'too much silk' and 'when to wear all this lace?'. I laughed as she angrily went through the endless racks of clothes in search of a sweater or tank-top.

"She will pay for this." Bella said as she breathed a sigh of relief at the discovery of her too large, gray sweater.

She quickly pulled her hair back into a loose ponytail, and slipped her feet into a pair of shoes.

"I think I'm ready." She said with a grin. "I think this might be the best way to get back at Alice."

Within a second I had lifted her off the floor and held her in my arms. Her arms went automatically around my neck, and her head rested naturally under my chin.

"Ready?" I asked as I walked out of the cottage.

She nodded, even though I didn't think she knew exactly what she was in for. She had gotten used to this form of transport now, but I didn't really think she would be prepared for the jump over the river. The river that was a lot bigger than the stream next to our new home.

I ran, and I felt her heart race with the excitement as the trees around us became a blur of motion. Then the river became visible, and I felt her heart beat even faster as she saw it coming towards us. With willpower I forced my legs to move faster, my strides to become longer. And suddenly we were flying over the river.

"Carlisle!"

Bella's face was suddenly pressed hard to my neck, her hands held in a firm grip on the back of my shirt. She held her breath, and her heart reminded me more of a scared rabbit than a human. Still, in the middle of this I could feel that a part of her enjoyed the sensation, and when I landed she looked up at me with the same excited sparkle in her eyes that she had the times we kissed.

"Don't ever do that again!"

I laughed again.

"And how were you thinking we would get from one side to the other then? Swimming?"

She blushed, but raised an eyebrow.

"Did you really manage to do that while I was sleeping?"

I nodded.

"You have no idea how much it really takes to wake you when you're sleeping."

I started to walk again.

"But don't worry; Emmett will soon be done with the bridge."

I knew that Bella would be more than capable to walk the last meters to the house, but I didn't really feel like letting her go just yet. Alice would be keeping her hostage for most of the day, so why let go before I had to?

As I thought that I could hear the bouncy steps of the vampire I once had considered as a daughter. That too was one of the strange changes that had occurred since I came back here. My family was still my family; they had just gotten new roles in my life. I still loved them, but Alice had become more like a sister or a cousin than a daughter. I had realized that we were almost the same age, all of us.

"Bella!" Alice walked over and I let Bella down so she could return the hug.

"It's good to see you Alice."

The smaller girl grinned and placed an arm around Bella to lead her into the house.

"I expect to hear all about your trip." Alice said with a badly hidden smile.

Bella blushed furiously, not that she needed to, Alice just managed to say things in the least innocent tone possible.

"Well … It was warm. And sunny."

Alice laughed loudly, and I could hear Emmett laughing from inside the house. He was quickly silenced by Rosalie though, and I could hear him begging for just one little joke.

I let the two girls walk into the house first, winking when Bella sent me a desperate glance over her shoulder. I knew she was going to be fine, she might even have fun planning the wedding. At least I hoped she would have.

"She's going to be fine."

Esme's voice came from behind me. I turned around to see her coming towards the house with her arms filled with flowers. Wildflowers I noticed. She must have been out for a while, judging the amount and the different kinds of them.

"Alice might be excited, but she's only got Bella's best interest on her mind. They're calling Angela as well, so she'll be a part of the planning." She smiled her warm smile. "It'll give her a chance to get to know the family better."

I nodded.

"Thank you for the cottage, Esme."

She shrugged, her caramel hair moving with the movement of her shoulders, the light playing with the different shades of her hair.

"We were debating getting you a house of your own, but we thought you would prefer being able to make that decision for yourselves. Besides, we will be moving again soon I guess, you really can't pretend to be in the mid-thirties."

She winked, and I laughed.

"You're right. We probably won't stay for long."

I suddenly wondered how things would be from now on. Would the rest of the family live together like we'd always used to? Or would we break apart even more, become smaller covens?

I could see that she was considering the same outcomes. She had already lost one son, and as far as I had understood last night they hadn't talked to him since the graduation. I wondered when he would show up again, I knew he would.

I followed Esme into the house, helping her cut and arrange the flowers in the kitchen. It was a weirdly normal thing to do, especially since the conversation seemed to flow as easily and unstrained as before.

The sound of the car pulling into our driveway made Esme finish up quickly and run to the door to greet Angela.

"Hi, Mrs. Cullen." Angela said with her usual shy voice.

"Please," Esme's warm voice replied. "Call me Esme. After all, you're family now."

I walked into the hall to see Angela blushing while Esme led her into the livingroom and showed her the way up to Alice's bedroom.

I smiled as I heard the happy chatter turn up a notch as Angela joined them. Things were working out better than we could have hoped for.

_**Bella's POV**_

The floor of Alice's room was covered with pictures of dresses, flowers and cakes. We had only been here for twenty minutes, and it already looked like we had been sitting here for hours.

"I really think this dress would be pretty." Alice held up another picture. "Especially if you have these flowers."

She didn't try to control everything like I had anticipated, she had actually just found heaps and heaps of information, and seemed to just want to help me put things together. It made me terrified, but at the same time I had to admit it was kind of fun.

"The dress is pretty." I agreed. "But the problem is the neckline, it would show off the scars.."

"Don't fret about the scars, Bella! They're a part of who you are now, and to be honest, they're kind of pretty with the way they sparkle in the sun."

I raised an eyebrow, wondering how Alice knew this.

"I kind of had a vision of you on the beach." She confessed.

I rolled my eyes, knowing that I really couldn't scold her for spying on me. After all; it wasn't like she could turn it on and off at her own will.

I sighed.

"It doesn't matter. Charlie …"

Charlie could not see the scars. I knew it was silly of me to consider what Charlie could, or couldn't do, since he wouldn't actually be there for the wedding. I felt my eyes tearing up, wishing that there was a chance I could tell him that I was marrying Carlisle.

Alice put her arm around me and hugged me close.

"I know, Bella."

She quickly placed the picture of the dress on top of the other thorn-out magazine pages, taking one from the stack that we hadn't already been through.

Suddenly Alice grinned from one ear to the other, and jumped up to open the door. It allowed me to hear the footsteps in the hallway, and I got up from the floor to see who was coming. It couldn't be a vampire; they wouldn't make enough noise to notice.

"Angela!" I squealed and ran over to her to give her a hug.

She smiled and hugged me back, only to be pulled away by Alice as soon as she let me go.

"I'm so glad you could make it." Alice said as she led us back into the room and closed the door behind us. "We're just going over some wedding details."

Angela smiled and picked up one of the many loose pages that were lying on the floor.

"Have you decided on a dress?" she asked me with the same excited look that Alice had.

I shook my head.

"I want something that can cover my scar… And we haven't even gone through one third of the ridiculously huge pile."

Angela laughed and looked around.

"I see you don't lack choices."

The sigh that escaped my lungs only made her laugh harder, and Alice hit me playfully on my arm.

"Hey. Focus."

Alice sat down next to me and started to go through the different pictures. It felt nice to be able just to be us three, laughing and joking like normal girls our age. The stack of possible dress- and flower choices shrank as the hours flew by, and Esme came up with food for me and Angela.

"When is the wedding?" Angela asked as we finished eating.

I looked at Alice; she was the only one who knew this with a hundred percent certainty. The grin lit her face up again, and I could feel my heart jumping in nervousness and anticipation.

"I thought a week would be enough to get everything planned?" Alice asked.

I felt dizzy. A week. I would be married in a week. I didn't even know anything about the wedding yet, and we hadn't even reached any conclusions about dresses or flowers during the day we had spent locked up in this room. I started to feel a little panicky, but tried to hide it from the others.

Alice placed her arm around me for the hundredth time that day, pressing me lightly to her side.

"Everything is taken care of Bella." she said. "And I've even gotten Jasper to get a license to wed people."

I looked at Alice with something I was sure had to be a shocked expression.

"_Jasper _is going to marry us?"

She grinned mischievously.

"Yes. In case you got cold feet at the altar." She replied in a matter of fact-ly tone.

I took the nearest pillow and threw it at her. I saw Angela laughing so hard that tears were running down her cheeks, at the same time that Alice threw the pillow back at me.

It didn't take long before the room was covered in white feathers and we were all lying on the floor, laughing.

"You have to go now." Alice said as she looked at me and Angela.

We looked at her and each other with questioning eyes. Alice turned to Angela first.

"Your father is going to call you in twenty seconds; he's going to need help babysitting the twins."

Angela sighed and got up, knowing that Alice would be right. She was expected to help out at home as long as she lived there. Which probably wouldn't be much longer now.

Alice turned to me now, the same time as the knock on the door.

"Bella, are you there?"

Carlisle's voice still had the ability to make my heart flutter, and I got up and opened the door.

His eyes widened at the white feathers and the pictures of wedding dresses that covered every inch of the floor and the bed. He reached out and picked a feather out of my messy hair.

"Had fun?" he asked with a smile on his face.

"It's been a great day, actually." I said as I leaned in and kissed him.

Alice made fake kissing noises as she walked passed us and followed Angela downstairs. I giggled, a reaction triggered by a day with the girls, and buried my face in Carlisle's shirt.

When I pulled away I could see his wondering expression at my reaction, and I quickly changed the subject.

"So what've you been up to today?"

He smiled secretively.

"I have a surprise actually."

He lifted me off the ground, running passed the others downstairs, and heading back to our little cottage in the forest. The leap over the river didn't scare me as much when I was expecting it, but I still looked forward for the bridge Carlisle had said Emmett would build.

There was fluttering of butterfly wings when I realized that I might not need the bridge. It would only be a week till the wedding. I would be a vampire then.

We reached the house, and he sat me down on a stone by the stream. The evening sun transformed everything into a golden orange, reflecting in his pure gold eyes. He smiled at me while reaching out to take my hand in his.

"I know you didn't ask for this, Bella." he started, his voice a little hesitant. "But I feel this is the right thing to do. This is what I want to do."

He sat down at one knee, pulling a small, square box from his pocket. A jewelry box.

My heart sped fast enough that I could hear the ringing in my ears, and I was sure I had turned an unattractive shade of red by now.

"Bella Swan," his eyes met mine. "I know you didn't want a ring, but to me the ring symbolize the promise made. And so I will ask you again, now with a symbol of my promise to you."

I didn't notice the tear on my face before he gently wiped it away with his finger. One should think that being proposed to wouldn't have the same effect the second time, but it clearly had.

"Will you marry me, Bella Swan?"

I nodded, I couldn't seem to get the words out.

"Yes." I stuttered as he waited for the answer. "Of course I will. I already agreed to it."

He laughed softly and placed the ring on my finger. The diamond sparkling vividly in the evening sun. I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him passionately.

* * *

_**Settling into the story again. The action isn't far away though. **_

_**I don't know when the next chapter will be up, since I also want to continue my CaiusXBella fic, A Castle of Ice. Check it out if you want to, I really enjoy writing it. I hope to get started on the next chapter this week though, since it's my fall break. **_

_**And as always, your feedback is much appreciated. **_

_**J.**_


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